Successful Wedding Day Coordination Tips | Tips + Advice

This week, we are giving our best tips for successful wedding day coordination. Wedding day coordination is often the first service offered by wedding planners when they are just starting out. It’s a great way to get to know vendors, learn how different venues work and get experience before offering full-service planning. Today is the final part of our series offering successful tips for wedding day coordination services. You can find part one here: Before the Wedding Day and part two here: On the Wedding Day.

General tips and advice

I talked a little bit about this in the previous post but wanted to expand more on how to treat other vendors. Give all vendors the benefit of the doubt before, during and after the wedding. As the planner, you don’t want to be a dictator but rather you want to do whatever you can to ensure vendors can concentrate on their job and have adequate time for what they need to do on the wedding day. For example, you may have a photographer who wants two hours to take photos after the ceremony but if the venue and band are already booked to start earlier, talk to all those vendors to create the best schedule that fits what the bride and groom want. Most vendors are professionals who hate to be micromanaged. It’s our job to lead the team and guide everyone to success. On the flip side, there will be times when you work with a vendor who has no idea what he is doing and will need

Most vendors are professionals who hate to be micromanaged. It’s our job to lead the team and guide everyone to success. On the flip side, there will be times when you work with a vendor who has no idea what he is doing and will need strong gentle guidance to make sure his job gets done well and within the time frame allotted.

When in doubt about a wedding detail before the big day, ask the bride. When in doubt on the wedding day, you may need to make a decision based on what your clients would want. You know your clients best. If the bride and groom are very laid back and you know they don’t care about napkin folds, you can make a decision about what looks best. On the other hand, if your client is very particular, you may want to check with her about those types of details on the wedding day if you have not discussed it before.

For attire on the wedding day, wear professional but comfortable clothes. Most planners want to look like a professional, not a wedding guest. Layering your clothes often works well, especially if it is an outdoor event. If the setup is lengthy, some planners wear casual clothes and shoes for setup then change into your professional clothes for the wedding.

What other tips and advice can you offer other planners who provide wedding day coordination services? Please share them in the comments.

Comments

I specialize in Wedding Day Coordination; however, I call it “One Month Out Coordination. I meet with the bride at her venue with the caterer and any other vendors we deem necessary one month before her wedding. We go over everything for her wedding as well as any backup plans. I gather all contracts from vendors, review contracts and confirm everything with vendors, coordinate the rehearsal, prepare a very detailed time line and distribute to all vendors and everyone in the bridal party, and help the bride in every aspect of her wedding so that she can sit back and enjoy her wedding week and day with no worries. A lot of work goes into “Wedding Day Coordination.”